


sentiment

by sylvermyth



Category: Yuri!!! on Ice (Anime)
Genre: Character Study, M/M, introspective
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-11-17
Updated: 2016-11-17
Packaged: 2018-08-31 11:57:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,050
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8577673
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sylvermyth/pseuds/sylvermyth
Summary: For all that Hasetsu was completely foreign to Victor, it was almost a relief to be there.Never mind the Japanese assaulting his ears, the illegible signs, the culture that should be shocking him. The food was fantastic, the alcohol potent, and the hot springs—well, Victor was taking full advantage of that.





	

**Author's Note:**

> I read somewhere that "Yura" is a more accurate shortening of Yurio's name, so I used that for Victor's internal monologue.

For all that Hasetsu was completely foreign to Victor, it was almost a relief to be there.

Never mind the Japanese assaulting his ears, the illegible signs, the culture that should be shocking him. The food was fantastic, the alcohol potent, and the hot springs—well, Victor was taking full advantage of that.

Despite all the differences, he didn't feel all that homesick. Makkachin was there, and Hasetsu Ice Castle was close, and really, if he were to describe what home was to him, the things at the forefront of his mind were his poodle and a sheet of ice to skate on. It wasn't as busy as his home rink, and sometimes he missed the company, but it was peaceful.

It wasn't what he'd expected, when he'd made the decision to fly out and offer Yuuri his help, but then, Yuuri wasn't what he expected him to be, either.

Perhaps that was what attracted him to Yuuri. Victor, who'd always wanted to surprise his audience, who was struggling to keep them on their toes after so many years at it…he'd found someone that surprised _him_. There was no doubt that Yuuri was a capable skater—he'd made it to the Grand Prix Final—but he'd flopped so badly that there were speculations that he was done with skating. Speculations that were suddenly silenced when Yuuri's video appeared online.

Victor's program had been lacking. The choreography, the technical execution, all of that was fine, but it just wasn't clicking for him. Of course he would win—but wasn't that what they were expecting, anyway? There was nothing in it to surprise his audience, and he felt it nagging at him, the feelings making the performance…less.

His feelings were confirmed when he watched Yuuri's perfect rendition of the same program.

Yuuri Katsuki hadn't skated to music. He hadn't needed to: he'd made the music with his body. Technically, it was perfect, but more importantly, it had something that Victor's skate didn't. Emotion. It came across clearly, even on his phone's tiny screen, he could see it, could read passion in each edge, each jump, each spin.

Victor couldn't name _what_ the emotion was, but it certainly stirred something deep within him—he couldn't identify what _that_ was, either, but it made him want to-want to— He wasn't sure, himself. But going to Japan suddenly became a high priority.

Perhaps it was selfish, on his part. It was about surprising the public, and what better way to do so than by taking on a skater at their lowest, and lifting them up to the top, making them realize their potential? Of course he didn't have any formal experience as a coach, just the tips he would offer his rink-mates, and what he'd learned from Yakov, but he'd choreographed his own programs for years, and knew every element inside and out. And who could say no to the offer of Victor as coach? Yuuri obviously admired him enough to perfectly reproduce his program.

But once he was in Japan, everything changed.

For one, there were fewer eyes on him. Sure, there had been the initial commotion made by the press, but it was nothing compared to what he was used to. No competing skaters eying him critically, no panel of coaches lined up at the boards, no exasperated sighs from Yakov, who had long ago realized Victor's tendency to be headstrong. It was freeing, to have the rink just to himself, and Yuuri, and Yuuko's family.

It was…comforting.

Then there was the Katsuki family, as warm and welcoming as could be, full of love and encouragement for Yuuri, regardless of how well he'd done. Regardless of the soft flesh of Yuuri's thighs and stomach, that indicated the neglect of a training regimen. In Russia, they would've eaten him alive, skaters clamoring to the top at any cost, with even the smallest slip-up leaving a person in the dust.

And of course, Yuuri himself.

Reticent, soft-spoken Yuuri. Yuuri, who Victor couldn't quite figure out. He wasn't even sure what drove the other to skate, only that he'd seen it in Yuuri's passionate performance of Victor's program. It would be Victor's job to find that passion again, to hone it into a performance worthy of a gold medal at the Grand Prix Final.

And in searching for that passion, he got to know Yuuri.

Yuuri tackled his problems alone, Victor realized. Even with the support of his family and friends—in fact, even by their words, he conquered his anxiety alone, with his blades gliding on the ice. Or in Minako-san's studio, dancing, and either way, he was letting his anxiety go in the flow of his body, in the music of his soul.

Yuuri wasn't used to accepting help from others. It wasn't in his nature.

Victor thought, perhaps, that he saw a little of himself in Yuuri, in that way.

Yura's arrival in Japan was unexpected, if not surprising. Victor simply took it as an opportunity to push them both. He would be lying if he said he didn't favor Yuuri—Yuuri was already responding well to Victor's instruction, while Yura had been all but dismissive in he past. Victor wasn't even sure that Yura even wanted to win—and maybe neither did Yura—but even if he did, Yura had yet to learn that there was more to skating than just _winning_. There was more to skating than just perfectly executed elements.

Skating was a feeling.

Yuuri understood that. Victor could see it in the way he moved, and it made him wonder how Yuuri could've done so poorly the season before.

Then again, Victor knew that skating for oneself was different than skating with purpose. His job was to mold Yuuri's feelings into purpose.

It was an accident that Victor's feelings fell into place, too.

Casual, teasing touches began to have meaning. Coaching began to have meaning, supporting Yuuri, his purpose, was beginning to line up with something else.

He never would've had such a luxury in Russia.

And Yuuri was exceeding Victor's expectations, surprising him in ways he never would've dreamed, and they met each other on even ground, side by side.

And Victor began to think, maybe, that there was something else that consisted of "home."


End file.
